View allAll Photos Tagged ACCEPT
"Animals are born who they are, accept it, and that is that. They live with greater peace than people do" ~Gregory Maguire
I believe there is no country on this planet that has so many wild llamas and alpacas walking around in our surroundings. Llamas are graceful and peaceful, attributes less known by and found in the humans of today. #Travel #Peru #incaTrail
NEW YORK, NY - MAY 14: Jesse Williams accepts award onstage at The 22nd Annual Webby Awards at Cipriani Wall Street on May 14, 2018 in New York City. Photo: Kenny Rodriguez
Another monogram/symbol for a coaching project, the icon integrates the initial "A" that means accepting and one checkmark that means the challenges to complete.
"we accept the love we think we deserve"
- the perks of being a wall flower by stephen chbosky
i've been reading that book and it's completely and utterly amazing. it's so truthful and honest about life, it's something everyone needs to hear and read.
so this is another photo from my walk in the park. it's rare to find leaves right now in minnesota because every tree is bare from the cold winter. it's going to be both nice and strange to go back to florida next thursday. i miss the warm sun, but it's going to be strange to see spring in full bloom after being in this bare dry place where barely anything is growing. i can't wait for summer.
but anyways, i'm off to finish reading the perks of being a wallflower. i only have about 50 or 60 more pages.
CC20409 hauled KA 38-Turangga Express,running in the Kedinding Village.
Alhamdulillah accepted by RP.net
Mein Beitrag zur Weekly Pic Monatsaufgabe im März - "Bemerken - Herausforderung - Handwerk" Eiserner Fotograf (3 Begriffe in einem Bild unterbringen)
Bovington Tank Museum - FV701L Car, Scout, Reconnaissance
First accepted into service with the British Army in 1952, the Ferret Scout Car (FV701), was specifically designed as the Post-War Scout Car successor to the famous Daimler `Dingo'. The Ferret has seen numerous upgrades throughout its long service life with 12 main variants being produced from the turretless Mark 1 to the so-called `Big Wheeled' Ferret and the Swingfire equipped Mk 5. By the time Daimler had ceased production over 4,400 Ferrets had been produced for service in over thirty countries. The Ferret went out of service with the British Army in the early-to-mid 1990s.
The hull of the Ferret is of all-welded construction. The introduction of the up-armoured Mark 2/4 and 2/5 versions affords the crew some protection from HE shell bursts which are also designed to withstand a frontal attack from small arms fire and .50 calibre armour piercing rounds from 100 yards. Additionally, the hull was designed and constructed to withstand the impact of a mine. On either side of the hull an escape hatch is located for emergency access. The Ferret is not provided with NBC nor night vision capabilities.
The fully waterproofed Rolls-Royce B60A engine, situated at the rear of vehicle, provides 129bhp to all four road wheels through a pre-selective epicyclic gearbox and a transfer box allowing the driver to select five-speeds for both forward and reverse movement. Suspension, is by double-action hydraulic shock absorbers surrounded by a helical coil-spring for each independent wheel station.
The driver, situated at the front of the vehicle, is provided with a main viewing hatch and two additional hatches to his front left, and front right, for increased visibility and observation. Each hatch is fitted with its own No.17 observation persiscope for closed down operations.
The steel turret, which was a feature of the Mark 2 series onwards, is of all-welded construction, and provides the Ferret commander/gunner with the means to manually traverse his 7.62mm (0.30) Browning Machine Gun through a full 360°. The Browning can also be manually elevated through - 15 to + 45 degrees. The provision of a sight periscope, AFV No. 3 Mk 1, at the front of the turret roof allows the gun to be aimed. The vehicle is also fitted with two triple 66mm eletrically fired smoke dischargers located on both the front mudguards.
The Museum exhibit has been painted white to represent a United Nations Ferret serving with 4th Royal Tank Regiment in Cyprus. The original registration number 02 BB 84 has been overpainted and replaced by the VRN 02 CC 40.
In 1973 02 BB 84 underwent conversion to its present Ferret Mark 2/5 VHF designation but it was originally built as part of a contract (6/FV/14231) for hundred and eleven Mark 1 Ferrets (FV701C) in 1955. Once built, it would have entered service with the British Army in August 1956 and its 419 A&B Vehicle History Cars identify it as having served with the following units; Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry 1962 - 1973 and 32 Field Squadron, Royal Engineers 1974 - 1980, before being sold on to The Tank Museum in 1984.
The designation Mark 2/5 VHF (FV 701L) means that 02 BB 84 is the up-armoured version of the Mark 2/1 armed with a .30 Browning MG and fitted with a two door rotating turret. It was later back fitted with applique armour plates to the sides and rear of the hull and turret to convert it to the Mark 2/4 standard. It has also been installed with a VHF radio system.
1908 postmarked postcard view of the Bartholomew County Court House in Columbus, Indiana. The court house stood on the northeast corner of the square that was bounded by Third Street on the north, Washington Street on the east, Second Street on the south, and Jackson Street on the west. This view was looking southwest across the intersection at Third and Washington Streets. The time on the tower clock was 11 am. The county jail was located south of the court house and was partially visible at the left edge of this view.
From the collection of Thomas Keesling.
Copyright 2011-2013 by Hoosier Recollections. All rights reserved. This image is part of a creative package that includes the associated text, geodata and/or other information. Neither this package in its entirety nor any of the individual components may be downloaded, transmitted or reproduced without the prior written permission of Hoosier Recollections.
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The following additional information is provided courtesy of David Enyart from his “Data Base of Indiana Court Houses.”
The first commissioner’s court met at the house of John Parker on Haw Creek on February 12, 1821 and fixed the county seat at a location they named Tiptona which was the site of a White River ferry. The town name was changed from Tiptona to Columbus at the second commissioner’s meeting in March, 1821. This is the fourth Bartholomew County Court House and has been in use since 1874.
Details: Castle style architecture; National Historic Place
Cost: Greater than $225,000
Architect: Isaac Hodgson
Paid: $8998.95
Ordered: 12/14/1870
Plans accepted: March 1871
Builder: McCormack & Sweeney
Contract: 4/18/1871
Bid: $139,900
Paid: $175,000
Dedicated: 12/29/1874
David has compiled additional information for this and the other 91 Indiana counties. Through David's generosity, all of that information can be found at the Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center. The web address is www.genealogycenter.info/search_incourthousehistories.php.
Donation Information:
If you would like to help those affected by Wednesday's storms, the American Red Cross is accepting donations in a couple of ways.
Make out your check to "American Red Cross - Neighbors in Need", and mail it to:
American Red Cross - Neighbors in Need
300 Chase Park South
Hoover Alabama 35244
If you prefer to make a donation on-line, please click here to visit alredcross.org
-To apply for federal disaster assistance online, go to www.disasterassistance.gov
-To apply over the phone, call 1-800-621-3362 between the hours of 7am and 10 pm.
-The United Way has set up a hotline to help victims find low cost temporary housing. Call 211 for more details.
Volunteer Information:
-United Way's Hands on Birmingham - www.handsonbirmingham.org
-Volunteers in Tuscaloosa are asked to register at St. Matthias Episcopal Church on Skyland Boulevard
-Volunteers in Calhoun County must register at the Ohatchee Police Department
-Volunteers in Concord must register at the YMCA on 4th Avenue South
-Webster's Chapel leaders are looking for volunteers with vehicles who can distribute supplies to tornado victims. Volunteers should go to the Webster's Chapel Fire Station
Drop off Locations:
-Harvest Church in Northport is accepting donations for tornado survivors
-Christian Service Mission at 3600 3rd Ave South is accepting personal care items, baby supplies, and other items of basic need
-First Baptist Church Trussville is a drop off point for donations Monday through Friday 8am to 6pm
-Church of the Highlands on Grants Mill Road is accepting items of basic need
-Mt. Zion Baptist Church in Alexandria is collecting donations of bathing supplies
-Clear Branch United Methodist Church in Argo is a drop off location from 8am to 4pm Monday through Friday
-Mark Ferrier Ministries has a drop off point at 97.7 Fox FM radio in Jasper
-Alabaster First United Methodist Church accepting donations for storm survivors at Restore Building behind the church
-Holy Faith Temple is accepting donations for tornado survivors in Childersburg
-Central Baptist Church of Jasper is collecting supplies for victims in Cordova.
-McAlpine Recreation Center at 1115 Avenue F in Ensley is now a drop off point
-108 Haynes Street in Talladega is collecting donations for survivors in East Alabama
-East Birmingham Church of God on First Avenue North is collecting supplies
-All Books-A-Million stores are collecing monetary donations for the Salvation Army
-East Birmingham Church of God in Christ on 1st Avenue is collecting supplies
-Aldrich Assembly of God is collecting relief supplies at Lucky's Market in Montevallo and Sammy's Fresh Market in Wilsonville.
-Vance town community center is collecting donations for survivors in Vance
-Helena Cumberland Presbyterian Church is accepting donations all week from 9am until 6pm.
-Donations in Calhoun County may be dropped off at Eagle Point Baptist Church in Jacksonville and Word Alive Church in Coldwater.
-Jasper Jaycees are accepting donated items at the fairgrounds on Airport Road. Cash donations can be made at Bank of Walker County. Call 205-221-3928 for more info.
-Hardin's Chapel Church in Ragland is an official EMA site
-Cullman county donation locations: Eagle Point Church, Isaiah 58-Word Alive Church, Piedmont Benevolence and Salvation Army
-UAB is holding blood drives at the North Pavillion from 10am to 5pm Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday. 7am to 2pm Tuesday and Friday
Places to pick up items or get help:
-People with disabilities who have lost medication or equipment can call 205-251-2223 ext 102
-United Way has set up a hotline to help victims find low cost temporary housing - call 211
-There will be a physician on site and medicine available at Scott School through Saturday from 7am to 7pm
-Tornado survivors in Hale and Greene counties can get help at Springfield United Methodist Church in Eutaw and at Johnson Hill United Methodist Church in Union
-Toiletries and clothing are available for pick up at Plum Grove Baptist Church in Tuscaloosa. If you need transportation, call 205-292-5836
-Food and water stations for victims are set up at the Leland Shopping Center, Forest Lake Baptist relief center and Skyland Elementary.
-Aldridge Community Missionary Baptist Church in Parrish has food, formula, clothes and water for any storm survivors who need help.
-Victims in St. Clair County can get food, water and other supplies at the Shoal Creek Community Center.
-Tarps available in St. Clair County at Odenville Fire Department, Pell City Fire Station One, Reiverside Fire Department
-The Salvation Army has set up mobile canteen operations in Forest Lake, Holt High School and on 15th Street in Alberta City.
-Tornado victims in Hale and Greene Counties can get help at Springfield United Methodist Church in Eutaw and at Johnson Hill United Methodist Church in Union.
-The Masonic Lodge in Pleasant Grove is serving meals and distributing supplies to tornado victims.
-Bethel Baptist Church in Pratt City is providing food and shelter to tornado survivors in that community
-Food, water and other supplies are available at Pleasant Ridge Baptist Church in Hueytown.
-The Red Cross has opened feeding stations at Oak Grove Baptist Church, Knighten's Volunteer Fire Department, Webster's Chapel Volunteer Fire Department, First Baptist Church of Williams, Mt. Olive Volunteer Fire Department in Ohatchee and the Ellis Community Fire Department.
-Hardin's Chapel Church in Ragland is an official EMA site
-Free first aid station is open in Pleasant Grove from 9am to 6pm at 615 Pleasant Grove Road Monday through Friday
-Free medical clinic at Scott School in Pratt City 7am to 7pm
Shelters:
-Bethel Baptist Church in Pratt City is providing food and shelter to tornado victims in that community.
-The American Red Cross has set up shelters at the Belk Center in Tuscaloosa, First Baptist Church in Hanceville, the Boutwell Auditorium in Birmingham, the Civic Center in Cullman and First United Methodist Church in Springville.
-American Red Cross shelter in St. Clair County is at Greensport Baptist Church in Ashville
Insurance office locations:
-Allstate Insurance has mobile claims centers set up at the Lowe's in Bessemer, the Winn-Dixie at River Square Plaza in Hueytown and the K-Mart on Skyland Boulevard in Tuscaloosa.
-State Farm has centers set up at Lowe's in Cullman, Tuscaloosa, Bessemer and Fultondale.
-ALFA has centers at the Save-a-Lot in Cullman and the ALFA Service Center in Gadsden.
-Farmers Insurance has centers at Home Depot in Tuscaloosa, the Forest Square Shopping Center in Forestdale, and the Farmers district offices in Vestavia Hills and Pell City.
Misc:
-A battery charging station is set up at the Walmart in Tuscaloosa. Flash lights are also being given away while supplies last.
-If you have loved ones who are still missing in the Birmingham area, call 205-787-1487 or 205-787-1488.
-Greater Birmingham Humane Society lost and found pet hotline open 8am to 5pm daily: 205-397-8534. Hotline is for Jefferson and Tuscaloosa counties
-Official FEMA mobile disaster recovery center in Sumter county: Geiger Town Hall 201 Broadway
-Victims in Pratt City are in need of trash bags and baskets to help collect their personal belongings
-Calhoun County needs rope, tools, gloves, masks, tarps, first aid supplies and baby supplies
-Some local contractors in Tuscaloosa are offering free debris removal. Call 205-248-5800.
-Samaritan's Purse in Tuscaloosa is providing free debris removal and free tarps. Call 205-345-7554.
-The McWane Center in Birmingham is offering free admission to anyone who brings supplies for tornado victims.
-A dusk to dawn curfew is in effect for all of Cullman County.
-An 8pm to 6am curfew is in effect in the city of Tuscaloosa.
I’ve been wanting to take a city break in summer, rather than in the cold months for a while, so rather than heading for the Lake District for a week of toil on the fells when Jayne could get a week off, we took off from Liverpool for Paris. Flight times were nice and sociable but it meant we were on the M62 car park at a busy time in both directions – it’s a shambles! I’ve stopped over in Paris a dozen times – on my way to cycling in the Etape du Tour in the Alps or Pyrenees – and had a few nights out there. Come to think about it and we’ve spent the day on the Champs Elysees watching the final day of the Tour de France with Mark Cavendish winning. We hadn’t been for a holiday there though and it was a bit of a spur of the moment decision. Six nights gave us five and a half days to explore Paris on foot. I had a good selection of (heavy) kit with me, not wanting to make the usual mistake of leaving something behind and regretting it. In the end I carried the kit in my backpack – an ordinary rucksack – to keep the weight down, for 103 miles, all recorded on the cycling Garmin – and took 3500 photos. The little Garmin is light and will do about 15 hours, it expired towards the end of a couple of 16 hour days but I had the info I wanted by then. This also keeps the phone battery free for research and route finding – I managed to flatten that once though.
What can I say – Paris was fantastic! The weather varied from OK to fantastic, windy for a few days, the dreaded grey white dullness for a while but I couldn’t complain really. We were out around 8.30 in shorts and tee shirt, which I would swap for a vest when it warmed up, hitting 30 degrees at times, we stayed out until around midnight most nights. It was a pretty full on trip. The security at some destinations could have been a problem as there is a bag size limit to save room in the lifts etc. I found the French to be very pragmatic about it, a bag search was a cursory glance, accepting that I was lugging camera gear, not bombs around, and they weren’t going to stop a paying customer from passing because his bag was a bit over size.
We didn’t have a plan, as usual we made it up as we went along, a loose itinerary for the day would always end up changing owing to discoveries along the way. Many times we would visit something a few times, weighing the crowds and light etc. up and deciding to come back later. I waited patiently to go up the Eiffel Tower, we arrived on Tuesday and finally went up on Friday evening. It was a late decision but the weather was good, the light was good and importantly I reckoned that we would get a sunset. Previous evenings the sun had just slid behind distant westerly clouds without any golden glory. It was a good choice. We went up the steps at 7.30 pm, short queue and cheaper – and just to say that we had. The steps are at an easy angle and were nowhere near as bad as expected, even with the heavy pack. We stayed up there, on a mad and busy Friday night, until 11.30, the light changed a lot and once we had stayed a couple of hours we decided to wait for the lights to come on. This was a downside to travelling at this time of year, to do any night photography we had to stay out late as it was light until 10.30. The Eiffel Tower is incredible and very well run, they are quite efficient at moving people around it from level to level. It was still buzzing at midnight with thousands of people around. The sunset on Saturday was probably better but we spent the evening around the base of the Tower, watching the light change, people watching and soaking the party atmosphere up.
Some days our first destination was five miles away, this is a lot of road junctions in a city, the roads in Paris are wide so you generally have to wait for the green man to cross. This made progress steady but when you are on holiday it doesn’t matter too much. Needless to say we walked through some dodgy places, with graffiti on anything that stays still long enough. We were ultra-cautious with our belongings having heard the pickpocket horror stories. At every Café/bar stop the bags were clipped to the table leg out of sight and never left alone. I carried the camera in my hand all day and everywhere I went, I only popped it in my bag to eat. I would guess that there were easier people to rob than us, some people were openly careless with phones and wallets.
We didn’t enter the big attractions, it was too nice to be in a museum or church and quite a few have a photography ban. These bans make me laugh, they are totally ignored by many ( Japanese particularly) people. Having travelled around the world to see something, no one is going to stop them getting their selfies. Selfies? Everywhere people pointed their cameras at their own face, walking around videoing – their self! I do like to have a few photos of us for posterity but these people are self-obsessed.
Paris has obviously got a problem with homeless (mostly) migrants. Walk a distance along the River Seine and you will find tented villages, there is a powerful smell of urine in every corner, with the no alcohol restrictions ignored, empty cans and bottles stacked around the bins as evidence. There are families, woman living on mattresses with as many as four small children, on the main boulevards. They beg by day and at midnight they are all huddled asleep on the pavement. The men in the tents seem to be selling plastic Eiffel Tower models to the tourists or bottled water – even bottles of wine. Love locks and selfy sticks were also top sellers. There must be millions of locks fastened to railings around the city, mostly brass, so removing them will be self-funding as brass is £2.20 a kilo.
As for the sights we saw, well if it was on the map we tried to walk to it. We crossed the Periphique ring road to get to the outer reaches of Paris. La Defense – the financial area with dozens of modern office blocks – was impressive, and still expanding. The Bois de Boulogne park, with the horse racing track and the Louis Vuitton Centre was part of a 20 mile loop that day. Another day saw us in the north east. We had the dome of the Sacre Couer to ourselves, with thousands of tourists wandering below us oblivious of the entrance and ticket office under the church. Again the light was fantastic for us. We read that Pere Lachaise Cemetery or Cimitiere du Pere Lachaise was one of the most visited destinations, a five mile walk but we went. It is massive, you need a map, but for me one massive tomb is much the same as another, it does have highlights but we didn’t stay long. Fortunately we were now closer to the Canal St Martin which would lead us to Parc de la Villette. This was a Sunday and everywhere was both buzzing and chilled at the same time. Where ever we went people were sat watching the world go by, socializing and picnicking, soaking the sun up. As ever I wanted to go up on the roof of anything I could as I love taking cityscapes. Most of these were expensive compared with many places we’ve been to before but up we went. The Tour Montparnasse, a single tower block with 59 floors, 690 foot high and extremely fast lifts has incredible views although it was a touch hazy on our ascent. The Arc de Triomphe was just up the road from our hotel, we went up it within hours of arriving, well worth the visit.
At the time of writing I have no idea how many images will make the cut but it will be a lot. If I have ten subtly different shots of something, I find it hard to consign nine to the dark depths of my hard drive never to be seen again – and I’m not very good at ruthless selection – so if the photo is OK it will get uploaded. My view is that it’s my photostream, I like to be able to browse my own work at my leisure at a later date, it’s more or less free and stats tell me these images will get looked at. I’m not aiming for single stunning shots, more of a comprehensive overview of an interesting place, presented to the best of my current capabilities. I am my own biggest critic, another reason for looking at my older stuff is to critique it and look to improve on previous mistakes. I do get regular requests from both individuals and organisations to use images and I’m obliging unless someone is taking the piss. I’m not bothered about work being published (with my permission) but it is reassuringly nice to be asked. The manipulation of Flickr favourites and views through adding thousands of contacts doesn’t interest me and I do sometimes question the whole point of the Flickr exercise. I do like having access to my own back catalogue though and it gives family and friends the chance to read about the trip and view the photos at their leisure so for the time being I’m sticking with it. I do have over 15 million views at the moment which is a far cry from showing a few people an album, let’s face it, there’s an oversupply of images, many of them superb but all being devalued by the sheer quantity available.
Don’t think that it was all walking and photography, we had a great break and spent plenty of time in pavement bistros having a glass of wine and people watching. I can certainly understand why Paris is top of the travellers list of destinations.
from Trois Primitifs
by J.-K. Huysmans
Translated by Robert Baldick
Phaidon Press Ltd., 1958
MATTHIAS GRÜNEWALD, the painter of the Cassel Crucifixion which I described in Là-bas and which is now in the Karlsruhe Museum, has fascinated me for many years. Whence did he come, what was his life, where and how did he die? Nobody knows for certain; his very name has been disputed, and the relevant documents are lacking; the pictures now accepted as his work were formerly attributed in turn to Albrecht Dürer, Martin Schongauer and Hans Baldung Grien, while others which he never painted are conceded to him by countless handbooks and museum catalogues...
It is not to Mainz, Aschaffenburg, Eisenach, or even to Isenheim, whose monastery is dead, that we must go to find Grünewald's works, but to Colmar, where the master displays his genius in a magnificent ensemble, a polyptych composed of nine pieces.
There, in the old Unterlinden convent, he seizes on you the moment you go in and promptly strikes you dumb with the fearsome nightmare of a Calvary. It is as if a typhoon of art had been let loose and was sweeping you away, and you need a few minutes to recover from the impact, to surmount the impression of awful horror made by the huge crucified Christ dominating the nave of this museum, which is installed in the old disaffected chapel of the convent.
The scene is arranged as follows:
In the centre of the picture a gigantic Christ, of disproportionate size if compared with the figures grouped around him, is nailed to a cross which has been roughly trimmed so that patches of bare wood are exposed here and there; the transverse branch, dragged down by the hands, is bent as in the Karlsruhe Crucifixion into the shape of a bow. The body looks much the same in the two works: pale and shiny, dotted with spots of blood, and bristling like a chestnut-burr with splinters that the rods have left in the wounds; at the ends of the unnaturally long arms the hands twist convulsively and claw the air; the knees are turned in so that the bulbous knee-caps almost touch; while the feet, nailed one on top of the other, are just a jumbled heap of muscles underneath rotting, discoloured flesh and blue toe-nails; as for the head, it lolls on the bulging, sack-like chest patterned with stripes by the cage of the ribs. This crucified Christ would be a faithful replica of the one at Karlsruhe if the facial expression were not entirely different. Here, in fact, Jesus no longer wears the fearful rictus of tetanus; the jaw is no longer contracted, but hangs loosely, with open mouth and slavering lips.
Christ is less frightening here, but more humanly vulgar, more obviously dead. In the Karlsruhe panel the terrifying effect of the trismus, of the strident laugh, served to conceal the brutishness of the features, now accentuated by this imbecile slackness of the mouth. The Man-God of Colmar is nothing but a common thief who has met his end on the gallows.
That is not the only difference to be noted between the two works, for here the grouping of the figures is also dissimilar. At Karlsruhe the Virgin stands, as usual, on one side of the cross and St. John on the other; at Colmar the traditional arrangement is flouted, and the astonishing visionary that was Grünewald asserts himself, at once ingenious and ingenuous, a barbarian and a theologian, unique among religious painters.
On the right of the cross there are three figures: the Virgin, St. John and Magdalen. St. John, looking rather like an old German student with his peaky, clean-shaven face and his fair hair falling in long, dry wisps over a red robe, is holding in his arms a quite extraordinary Virgin, clad and coifed in white, who has fallen into a swoon, her face white as a sheet, her eyes shut, her lips parted to reveal her teeth. Her features are fine and delicate, and entirely modern; if it were not for the dark green dress which can be glimpsed close to the tighdy clenched hands, you might take her for a dead nun; she is pitiable and charming, young and beautiful. Kneeling in front of her is a little woman who is leaning back with her hands clasped together and raised towards Christ. This oldish, fair-haired creature, wearing a pink dress with a myrtle-green lining, her face cut in half below the eyes by a veil on a level with the nose, is Magdalen. She is ugly and ungainly, but so obviously inconsolable that she grips your heart and moves it to compassion.
On the other side of the picture, to the left of the cross, there stands a tall, strange figure with a shock of sandy hair cut straight across the forehead, limpid eyes, a shaggy beard, and bare arms, legs and feet, holding an open book in one hand and pointing to Christ with the other.
This tough old soldier from Franconia, with his camel-hair fleece showing under a loosely draped cloak and a belt tied in a big knot, is St. John the Baptist. He has risen from the dead, and in order to explain the emphatic, dogmatic gesture of the long, curling forefinger pointed at the Redeemer, the following inscription has been set beside his arm: Illum oportet crescere, me autem minui. 'He must increase, but I must decrease.'
He who decreased to make way for the Messiah, who in turn died to ensure the predominance of the Word in the world, is alive here, while He who was alive when he was defunct, is dead. It seems as if, in coming to life again, he is foreshadowing the triumph of the Resurrection, and that after proclaiming the Nativity before Jesus was born on earth, he is now proclaiming that Christ is born in Heaven, and heralding Easter. He has come back to bear witness to the accomplishment of the prophecies, to reveal the truth of the Scriptures; he has come back to ratify, as it were, the exactness of those words of his which will later be recorded in the Gospel of that other St. John whose place he has taken on the left of Calvary--St. John the Apostle, who does not listen to him now, who does not even see him, so engrossed is he with the Mother of Christ, as if numbed and paralysed by the manchineel of sorrow that is the cross.
So, alone in the midst of the sobbing and the awful spasms of the sacrifice, this witness of the past and the future, standing stolidly upright, neither weeps nor laments: he certifies and promulgates, impassive and resolute. And at his feet is the Lamb of the World that he baptized, carrying a cross, with a stream of blood pouring into a chalice from its wounded breast.
Thus arranged, the figures stand out against a background of gathering darkness. Behind the gibbet, which is planted on a river bank, there flows a stream of sadness, swift-moving yet the colour of stagnant water; and the somewhat theatrical presentation of the drama seems justified, so completely does it harmonize with this dismal setting, this gloom which is more than twilight but not yet night. Repelled by the sombre hues of the background, the eye inevitably turns from the glossy fleshtints of the Redeemer, whose enormous proportions no longer hold the attention, and fastens instead upon the dazzling whiteness of the Virgin's cloak, which, seconded by the vermilion of the apostle's clothes, attracts notice at the expense of the other parts, and almost makes Mary the principal figure in the work.
That would spoil the whole picture, but the balance, about to be upset in favour of the group on the right, is maintained by the unexpected gesture of the Precursor, who in his turn seizes your attention, only to direct it towards the Son.
One might almost say that, coming to this Calvary, one goes from right to left before arriving at the centre.
This is undoubtedly what the artist intended, as is the effect produced by the disproportion between the various figures, for Grünewald is a master of pictorial equilibrium and in his other works keeps everything in proportion. When he exaggerated the stature of his Christ he was trying to create a striking impression of profound suffering and great strength; similarly he made this figure more than usually remarkable in order to keep it in the foreground and prevent it from being completely eclipsed by the great patch of white that is the Virgin.
As for her, it is easy to see why he gave her such prominence, easy to understand his predilection for her--because never before had he succeeded in painting a Madonna of such divine loveliness, such super-human sorrow. Indeed, it is astonishing that she should appear at all in the rebarbative work of this artist, so completely does she differ from the type of individual he has chosen to represent God and his saints.
His Jesus is a thief, his St. John a social outcast, his Precursor a common soldier. Even assuming that they are nothing more than German peasants, she is obviously of very different extraction; she is a queen who has taken the veil, a marvellous orchid growing among weeds.
Anyone who has seen both pictures--the one at Karlsruhe and the one at Colmar--will agree that there is a clear distinction between them. The Karlsruhe Calvary is better balanced and there is no danger of one's attention wandering from the principal subject. It is also less trivial, more awe-inspiring. You have only to compare the hideous rictus of its Christ and the possibly more plebeian but certainly less degraded face of its St. John with the coma of the Colmar Christ and the world-weary grimace of the disciple for the Karlsruhe panel to appear less conjectural, more penetrating, more effective, and, in its apparent simplicity, more powerful; on the other hand, it lacks the exquisite white Virgin and it is more conventional, less novel and unexpected. The Colmar Crucifixion introduces a new element into a scene treated in the same stereotyped fashion by every other painter; it dispenses with the old moulds and discards the traditional patterns. On reflexion, it seems to be the more imposing and profound of the two works, but it must be admitted that introducing the Precursor into the tragedy of Golgotha is more the idea of a theologian and a mystic than of an artist; here it is quite likely that there was some sort of collaboration between the painter and the purchaser, a commission described in the minutest detail by Guido Guersi, the Abbot of Isenheim, in whose chapel this picture was placed.
That, incidentally, was still the normal procedure long after the Middle Ages. All the archives of the period show that when contracting with image-carvers and painters--who regarded themselves as nothing more than craftsmen--the bishops or monks used to draw a plan of the proposed work, often even indicating the number of figures to be included and explaining their significance; there was accordingly only limited scope for the artist's own initiative, as he had to work to order within strictly defined bounds.
But to return to the picture, it takes up the whole of two wood panels which, in closing, cut one of Christ's arms in two, and, when closed, bring the two groups together. The back of the picture (for it has two faces on either side) has a separate scene on each panel: a Resurrection on one and an Annunciation on the other. Let me say straight away that the latter is bad, so that we can have done with it.
The scene is an oratory, where a book painted with deceptive realism lies open to reveal the prophecy of Isaiah, whose distorted figure, topped with a turban, is floating about in a corner of the picture, near the ceiling; on her knees in front of the book we see a fair-haired, puffy-faced woman, with a complexion reddened by the cooking-stove, pouting somewhat peevishly at a great lout with a no less ruddy complexion who is pointing two extremely long fingers at her in a truly comical attitude of reproach. It must be admitted that the Precursor's solemn gesture in the Crucifixion is utterly ridiculous in this unhappy imitation, where the two fingers are extended in what looks like insolent derision. As for the curly-wigged fellow himself, with that coarse, fat, red face you would take him for a grocer rather than an angel, if it were not for the sceptre he is holding in one hand and the green-and-red wings stuck to his back. And one can but wonder how the artist who created the little white Virgin could possibly represent Our Lord's Mother in the guise of this disagreeable slut with a smirk on her swollen lips, all rigged up in her Sunday best, a rich green dress set off by a bright vermilion lining.
But if this wing leaves you with a rather painful impression, the other one sends you into raptures, for it is a truly magnificent work--unique, I would say, among the world's paintings. In it Grünewald shows himself to be the boldest painter who has ever lived, the first artist who has tried to convey, through the wretched colours of this earth, a vision of the Godhead in abeyance on the cross and then renewed, visible to the naked eye, on rising from the tomb. With him we are, mystically speaking, in at the death, contemplating an art with its back to the wall and forced further into the beyond, this time, than any theologian could have instructed the artist to go. The scene is as follows:
As the sepulchre opens, some drunks in helmet and armour are knocked head over heels to lie sprawling in the foreground, sword in hand; one of them turns a somersault further off, behind the tomb, and lands on his head, while Christ surges upwards, stretching out his arms and displaying the bloody commas on his hands.
This is a strong and handsome Christ, fair-haired and brown-eyed, with nothing in common with the Goliath whom we watched decomposing a moment ago, fastened by nails to the still green wood of a gibbet. All round this soaring body are rays emanating from it which have begun to blur its outline; already the contours of the face are fluctuating, the features hazing over, the hair dissolving into a halo of melting gold. The light spreads out in immense curves ranging from bright yellow to purple, and finally shading off little by little into a pale blue which in turn merges with the dark blue of the night.
We witness here the revival of a Godhead ablaze with life: the formation of a glorified body gradually escaping from the carnal shell, which is disappearing in an apotheosis of flames of which it is itself the source and seat.
Christ, completely transfigured, rises aloft in smiling majesty; and one is tempted to regard the enormous halo which encircles him, shining brilliantly in the starry night like that star of the Magi in whose smaller orb Grünewald's contemporaries used to place the infant Jesus when painting the Bethlehem story--one is tempted to regard this halo as the morning star returning, like the Precursor in the Crucifixion, at night: as the Christmas star grown larger since its birth in the sky, like the Messiah's body since his Nativity on earth.
Having dared to attempt this tour de force, Grünewald has carried it out with wonderful skill. In clothing the Saviour he has tried to render the changing colours of the fabrics as they are volatilized with Christ. Thus the scarlet robe turns a bright yellow, the closer it gets to the light--source of the head and neck, while the material grows lighter, becoming almost diaphanous in this river of gold. As for the white shroud which Jesus is carrying off with him, it reminds one of those Japanese fabrics which by subtle gradations change from one colour to another, for as it rises it takes on a lilac tint first of all, then becomes pure violet, and finally, like the last blue circle of the nimbus, merges into the indigo-black of the night.
The triumphant nature of this ascension is admirably conveyed. For once the apparently meaningless phrase 'the contemplative life of painting' takes on a meaning, for with Grünewald we enter into the domain of the most exalted mysticism and glimpse, through the simulacra of colour and line, the well-nigh tangible emergence of the Godhead from its physical shell.
It is here, rather than in his horrific Calvaries, that the undeniable originality of this prodigious artist is to be seen.
This Crucifixion and this Resurrection are obviously the Colmar Museum's brightest jewels, but the amazing colourist that was Grünewald did not exhaust the resources of his art with these two pictures; we shall find more of his work, this time stranger yet less exalted, in another double-faced diptych which also stands in the middle of the old nave.
It depicts, on one side the Nativity and a concert of angels, on the other a visit from the Patriarch of the Cenobites to St. Paul the Hermit, and the temptation of St. Anthony.
In point of fact, this Nativity, which is rather an exaltation of the divine Motherhood, is one with the concert of angels, as is shown by the utensils, which overlap from one wing to the other and are cut in two when the panels are brought together.
The subject of this dual painting is admittedly obscure. In the left-hand wing the Virgin is seen against a distant, bluish landscape dominated by a monastery on a hill--doubtless Isenheim Abbey; on her left, beside a crib, a tub and a pot, a fig-tree is growing, and a rose-tree on her right. Fair-haired, with a florid complexion, thick lips, a high, bare brow and a straight nose, she is wearing a blue cloak over a carmine-coloured dress. She is not the servant-girl type, and has not come straight from the sheep-pen like her sister in the Annunciation, but for all that she is still just an honest German woman bred on beer and sausages: a farmer's wife, if you like, with servant-girls under her who look like the Mary of that other picture, but nothing more. As for the Child, who is very lifelike and very skilfully portrayed, he is a sturdy little Swabian peasant, with a snub nose, sharp eyes, and a pink, smiling face. And finally, in the sky above Jesus and Mary and below God the Father, who is smothered in clouds of orange and gold, swarms of angels are whirling about like scattered petals caught in a shower of saffron sunbeams.
All these figures are completely earthbound, and the artist seems to have realized this, for there is a radiance emanating from the Child's head and lighting up the Mother's fingers and face. Grünewald obviously wanted to convey the idea of divinity by means of these gleams of light filtering through the flesh, but this time he was not bold enough to achieve the desired effect: the luminous glow fails to conceal either the vulgarity of the face or the coarseness of the features.
So far, in any event, the subject is clear enough, but the same cannot be said of the complementary scene on the right-hand wing.
Here, in an ultra-Gothic chapel, with gold-scumbled pinnacles bristling with sinuous statues of prophets nestling among chicory, hop, knapweed and holly leaves, on top of slender pillars entwined by plants with singularly jagged leaves and twisted stems, are angels of every description, some in human form and others appearing simply as heads fitted into haloes shaped like funeral wreaths or collarettes: angels with pink or blue faces, angels with multicoloured or monochrome wings, angels playing the angelot or the theorbo or the viola d'amore, and all of them, like the pasty-faced, unhealthy-looking one in the foreground, gazing in adoration at the great Virgin in the other wing.
The effect is decidedly odd, but even odder is the appearance, beside these pure spirits and between two of the slender columns in the chapel, of another, smaller Virgin, this time crowned with a diadem of red-hot iron, who, her face suffused with a golden halo, her eyes cast down and her hands joined in prayer, is kneeling before the other Virgin and the Child.
What is the significance of this strange creature, who evokes the same weird impression as the girl with the cock and the money-pouch in Rembrandt's Night Watch--a girl likewise nimbed with a gentle radiance? Is this phantom queen a diminutive St. Anne or some other saint? She looks just like a Madonna, and a Madonna is what she must be. In painting her Grünewald has clearly tried to reproduce the light effect which blurs the features of Christ in his Resurrection, but it is difficult to see why he should do so here. It may be, of course, that he wanted to represent the Virgin, crowned after her Assumption, returning to earth with her angelic retinue to pay homage to that Motherhood which was her supreme glory; or, on the other hand, she may still be in this world, foreseeing the celebration of her triumph after her painful life among us. But this last hypothesis is promptly demolished by Mary's unheeding attitude, for she appears to be completely unaware of the presence of the winged musicians, and intent only on amusing the Child. In fact, these are all unsupported theories, and it would be simpler to admit that we just do not understand. I need only add that these two pictures are painted in loud colours which are sometimes positively shrill to make it clear that this faery spectacle presented in a crazy Gothic setting leaves one feeling vaguely uncomfortable.
As a refreshing contrast, however, one can always linger in front of the panel showing St. Anthony talking with St. Paul; it is the only restful picture in the whole series, and one is already so accustomed to the vehemence of the others that one is almost tempted to find it too unexciting, to consider it too anodyne.
In a rural setting that is all bright blue and moss green, the two recluses are sitting face to face: St. Anthony curiously attired, for a man who has just crossed the desert, in a pearl-grey cloak, a blue robe and a pink cap; St. Paul dressed in his famous robe of palms, which has here become a mere robe of rushes, with a doe at his feet and the traditional raven flying through the trees to bring him the usual hermit's meal of a loaf of bread.
In this picture the colouring is quiet and delicate, the composition superb: the subject may have put a certain restraint upon Grünewald, but he has lost none of the qualities which make him a great painter. To anyone who prefers the cordial, expected welcome of a pleasing picture to the uncertainties of a visit to some more turbulent work of art, this wing will undoubtedly seem the nicest, soundest and sanest of them all. It constitutes a halt in the man's mad gallop--but only a brief halt, for he sets off again almost at once, and in the next wing we find him giving free rein to his fancy, caracolling along dangerous paths, and sounding a full fanfare of colours--as violent and tempestuous as he was in his other works.
The Temptation of St. Anthony must have given him enormous pleasure, for this picture of a demons' sabbath waging war on the good monk called for the most convulsive attitudes, the most extravagant forms and the most vehement colours. Nor was he slow to grasp this opportunity of exploiting the droller side of the supernatural. But if there is extraordinary life and colour in the Temptation, there is also utter confusion. Indeed, the picture is in such a tangle that it is impossible to distinguish between the limbs of the various devils, and one would be hard put to it to say which paw or wing beating or scratching the Saint belonged to which animal or bird.
The frantic hurly-burly in which these creatures are taking part is none the less captivating for that. It is true that Grünewald cannot match the ingenious variety and the very orderly disorder of a Bruegel or a Hieronymus Bosch, and that there is nothing here to compare with the diversity of clearly delineated and discreetly insane larvae which you find in the Fall of the Angels in the Brussels Museum: our painter has a more restricted fancy, a more limited imagination. He gives us a few demons' heads stuck with stags' antlers or straight horns, a shark's maw, and what appears to be the muzzle of a walrus or a calf; the rest of his superall belong to the bird family, and with arms in place of feet look like the offspring of empuses that have been covered by angry cocks.
All these escapees from an infernal aviary are clustered excitedly around the anchorite, who has been thrown on his back and is being dragged along by his hair. Looking rather like a Dutch version of Father Becker with his flowing beard, St. Anthony is screaming with fear, trying to protect his face with one hand, and in the other clutching his stick and his rosary, which are being pecked at furiously by a hen wearing a carapace in lieu of feathers. The monstrous creatures are all closing in for the kill; a sort of giant parrot, with a green head, crimson arms, yellow claws and grey-gold plumage, is on the point of clubbing the monk, while another demon is pulling off his grey cloak and chewing it up, and yet others are joining in, swinging rib-bones and frantically tearing his clothes to get at him.
Considered simply as a man, St. Anthony is wonderfully lifelike in gesture and expression; and once you have taken your fill of the whole dizzy scramble, you may notice two thought-provoking details which you overlooked at first, hidden as they seem to be in the bottom corners. One, in the right-hand corner, is a sheet of paper on which a few lines are written; the other is a weird, hooded creature, sitting quite naked beside the Saint, and writhing in agony.
The paper bears this inscription: Ubi eras Jhesu bone, ubi eras, quare non affuisti ut sanares vulnera mea?--which can be translated as: 'Where were you, good Jesus, where were you? And why did you not come and dress my wounds?'
This plaint, doubtless uttered by the hermit in his distress, is heard and answered, for if you look right at the top of the picture you will see a legion of angels coming down to release the captive and overpower the demons.
It may be asked whether this desperate appeal is not also being made by the monster lying in the opposite corner of the picture and raising his weary head heavenwards. And is this creature a larva or a man? Whatever it may be, one thing is certain: no painter has ever gone so far in the representation of putrefaction, nor does any medical textbook contain a more frightening illustration of skin disease. This bloated body, moulded in greasy white soap mottled with blue, and mamillated with boils and carbuncles, is the hosanna of gangrene, the song of triumph of decay!
Was Grünewald's intention to depict a demon in its most despicable form? I think not. On careful examination the figure in question is seen to be a decomposing, suffering human being. And if it is recalled that this picture, like the others, comes from the Anthonite Abbey of Isenheim, everything becomes clear. A brief account of the aims of this Order will, I think, suffice to explain the riddle. The Anthonite or Anthonine Order was founded in the Dauphiné in 1093 by a nobleman called Gaston whose son was cured of the burning sickness through the intercession of St. Anthony; its raison d'être was the care of people suffering from this type of disease. Placed under the Rule of St. Augustine, the Order spread rapidly across France and Germany, and became so popular in the latter country that during Grünewald's lifetime, in 1502, the Emperor Maximilian I granted it, as a mark of esteem, the right to bear the Imperial arms on its escutcheon, together with the blue tau which the monks themselves were to wear on their black habit.
Now there was at that time an Anthonite abbey at Isenheim which had already stood there for over a century. The burning sickness was still rife, so that the monastery was in fact a hospital. We know too that it was the Abbot of Isenheim, or rather, to use the terminology of this Order, the Preceptor, Guido Guersi, who commissioned this polyptych from Grünewald.
It is now easy to understand the inclusion of St. Anthony in this series of paintings. It is also easy to understand the terrifying realism and meticulous accuracy of Grünewald's Christ-figures, which he obviously modelled on the corpses in the hospital mortuary; the proof is that Dr. Richet, examining his Crucifixions from the medical point of view, states that 'attention to detail is carried to the point of indicating the inflammatory halo which develops around minor wounds'. Above all, it is easy to understand the picture--painted from life in the hospital ward--of that hideous, agonized figure in the Temptation, which is neither a larva nor a demon, but simply a poor wretch suffering from the burning sickness.
It should be added that the written descriptions of this scourge which have come down to us correspond in every respect with Grünewald's pictorial description, so that any doctor who wants to know what form this happily extinct disease took can go and study the sores and the affected tissues shown in the painting at Colmar.
Two doctors have given their attention to this figure: Charcot and Richet. The former, in Les Syphilitiques dans l'art, sees it above all as a picture of the so--called 'Neapolitan disease'; the latter, in L'Art et la Médecine, hesitates between a disease of that type and leprosy.
The burning sickness, also known as holy fire, hell fire and St. Anthony's fire, first appeared in Europe in the tenth century, and swept the whole continent. It partook of both gangrenous ergotism and the plague, showing itself in the form of apostems and abscesses, gradually spreading to the arms and legs, and after burning them up, detaching them little by little from the torso. That at least is how it was described in the fifteenth century by the biographers of St. Lydwine, who was afflicted with the disease. Dom Félibien likewise mentions it in his History of Paris, where he says of the epidemic which ravaged France in the twelfth century: 'The victims' blood was affected by a poisonous inflammation which consumed the whole body, producing tumours which developed into incurable ulcers and caused thousands of deaths.'
What is certain is that not a single remedy proved successful in checking the disease, and that often it was cured only by the intercession of the Virgin and the saints.
The Virgin's intervention is still commemorated by the shrine of Notre-Dame des Ardents in Picardy, and there is a well-known cult of the holy candle of Arras. As for the saints, apart from St. Anthony, people invoked St. Martin, who had saved the lives of a number of victims gathered together in a church dedicated to him; prayers were also said to St. Israel, Canon of Le Dorat, to St. Gilbert, Bishop of Meaux, and finally to Geneviève. This was because, one day in the reign of Louis the Fat when her shrine was being carried in solemn procession around the Cathedral of Paris, she cured a crowd of people afflicted with the disease who had taken refuge in the basilica, and this miracle caused such a stir that, in order to preserve the memory of it, a church was built in the same city under the invocation of Sainte-Geneviève des Ardents; it no longer exists, but the Parisian Breviary still celebrates the Saint's feast-day under that name.
But to return to Grünewald, who, I repeat, has clearly left us a truthful picture of a victim of this type of gangrene, the Colmar Museum also contains a predella Entombment, with a livid Christ speckled with flecks of blood, a hard-faced St. John with pale ochre-coloured hair, a heavily veiled Virgin and a Magdalen disfigured by tears. However, this predella is merely a feeble echo of Grünewald's great Crucifixions: it would be astounding, seen on its own in a collection of canvases by other painters, but here it is not even astonishing.
Mention must be made as well of two rectangular wings: one depicting a little bandy-legged St. Sebastian larded with arrows; the other--a panel cited by Sandrart--St. Anthony holding the Tau, the crozier of his Order--a St. Anthony so solemn and so thoughtful that he can even ignore the demon busily breaking window-panes behind him. And that brings us to the end of our review of this master-painter's works. You take leave of him spellbound for ever. And if you look for his origins you will look in vain, for none of the painters who preceded him or who were his contemporaries resembles him.
One can perhaps discern a certain foreign influence in Grünewald's work; as Goutzwiller points out in his booklet on the Colmar Museum, it is possible to see a reminiscence or a vague imitation of the contemporary Italian landscape manner in the way in which he plans his settings and sprinkles his skies with blue. Had he travelled in Italy, or had he seen pictures by Italian masters in Germany--perhaps at Isenheim itself, since the Preceptor Guido Guersi, to judge by his name, hailed from beyond the Alps? No one knows; but in any event, the very existence of this influence is open to question. It is, in fact, by no means certain that this man who anticipates modern painting, reminding one sometimes of Renoir with his acid colours and of the Japanese with his skilful nuances, did not arrange his landscapes without benefit of memories or copies, painting them from nature as he found them in the countryside of Thuringia or Swabia; for he could easily have seen the bright bluish backcloth of his Nativity in those parts. Nor do I share Goutzwiller's opinion that there is an unmistakable 'Italian touch' in the inclusion of a cluster of palm-trees in the picture of the two anchorites. The introduction of this type of tree into an Oriental landscape is so natural and so clearly called for by the subject that it does not imply any outside suggestion or influence. In any event, if Grünewald did know the work of foreign artists, it is surprising that he should have confined himself to borrowing their method of arranging and depicting skies and woods, while refraining from copying their technique of composition and their way of painting Jesus and the Virgin, the angels and the saints.
His landscapes, I repeat, are definitely German, as is proved by certain details. These may strike many people as having been invented to create an effect, to add a note of pathos to the drama of Calvary, yet in fact they are strictly accurate. This is certainly true of the bloody soil in which the Karlsruhe cross is planted, and which is no product of the imagination. Grünewald did much of his painting in Thuringia, where the earth, saturated with iron oxide, is red; I myself have seen it sodden with rain and looking like the mud of a slaughter-house, a swamp of blood.
As for his human figures, they are all typically German, and he owes just as little to Italian art when it comes to the arrangement of dress fabrics. These he has really woven himself, and they are so distinctive that they would be sufficient in themselves to identify his pictures among those of all other painters. With him we are far removed from the little puffs, the sharp elbows and the short frills of the Primitives; he drapes his clothes magnificently in flowing movements and long folds, using materials that are closely woven and deeply dyed. In the Karlsruhe Crucifixion they have something about them suggestive of bark ripped from a tree: the same harsh quality as the picture itself. At Colmar this impression is not so pronounced, but they still reveal the multiplicity of layers, the slight stiffness of texture, the ridges and the hollows which are the hallmark of Grünewald's work; this is particularly true of Christ's loincloth and St. John the Baptist's cloak.
Here again he is nobody's pupil, and we have no alternative but to put him down in the history of painting as an exceptional artist, a barbarian of genius who bawls out coloured prayers in an original dialect, an outlandish tongue.
His tempestuous soul goes from one extreme to another, restless and storm-tossed even during moments of deliberate repose; but just as it is deeply moving when meditating on the episodes of the Passion, so it is erratic and well-nigh baroque when reflecting on the joys of the Nativity. The truth is that it simpers and stammers when there is no torturing to be done, for Gruenwald is the painter of tombs rather than cribs, and he can only depict the Virgin successfully when he makes her suffer. Otherwise he sees her as red-faced and vulgar, and there is such a difference between his Madonnas of the sorrowful mysteries and his Madonnas of the joyful mysteries that one wonders whether he was not following an aesthetic system, a scheme of intentional antitheses.
It is, indeed, quite likely that he decided that the quality of divine Motherhood would only come out clearly under the stress of the suffering endured at the foot of the cross. This theory would certainly fit in with the one he adopted whenever he wished to glorify the divine nature of the Son, for he always painted the living Christ as the Psalmist and Isaiah pictured him--as the poorest and ugliest of men--and only restored his divine appearance to him after his Passion and death. In other words, Grünewald made the ugliness of the crucified Messiah the symbol of all the sins of the world which Christ took upon himself, thus illustrating a doctrine which was expounded by Tertullian, St. Cyprian, St. Cyril, St. Justin and countless others, and which was current for a good part of the Middle Ages.
He may also have been the victim of a technique which Rembrandt was to use after him: the technique of suggesting the idea of divinity by means of the light emanating from the very face that is supposed to represent it. Admirable in his Resurrection of Christ, this secretion of light is less convincing when he applies it to the little Virgin in the Angelic Concert and completely ineffective when he uses it to portray the fundamentally vulgar Child in the Nativity.
He probably placed too much reliance on these devices, crediting them with an efficacy they could not possess. It should, indeed, be noted that, if the light spinning like an artificial sun around the risen Christ suggests to us a vision of a divine world, it is because Christ's face lends itself to that idea by its gentle beauty. It strengthens rather than weakens the significance and effect of that huge halo, which in turn softens and enhances the features, veiling them in a mist of gold.
Such is the complete Grünewald polyptych in the Colmar Museum. I do not intend to deal here with those paintings attributed to him which are scattered among other art-galleries and churches, and which for the most part are not his work. I shall also pass over the Munich St. Erasmus and St. Maurice, which, if it must be accepted as his work, is cold and uncharacteristic; I shall even set aside the Fall of Jesus, which like the famous Crucifixion has been transferred from Cassel to Karlsruhe, and which is undoubtedly genuine. It shows a blue-clad Christ on his knees, dragging his cross, in the midst of a group of soldiers dressed in red and executioners dressed in white with pistachio stripes. He is gritting his teeth and digging his fingernails into the wood, but his expression is less of suffering than of anger, and he looks like a damned soul. This, in short, is a bad Grünewald.
Confining myself therefore to the brilliant, awe-inspiring flower of his art, the Karlsruhe Crucifixion and the nine pieces at Colmar, I find that his work can only be defined by coupling together contradictory terms.
The man is, in fact, a mass of paradoxes and contrasts. This Orlando furioso of painting is forever leaping from one extravagance to another, but when necessary the frenzied demoniac turns into a highly skilled artist who is up to every trick of the trade. Though he loves nothing better than a startling clash of colours, he can also display, when in good form, an extremely delicate sense of light and shade--his Resurrection is proof of that--and he knows how to combine the most hostile hues by gently coaxing them together with adroit chromatic diplomacy.
He is at once naturalistic and mystical, savage and sophisticated, ingenuous and deceitful. One might say that he personifies the fierce and pettifogging spirit of the Germany of his time, a Germany excited by the ideas of the Reformation. Was he involved, like Cranach and Dürer, in that emotional religious movement which was to end in the most austere coldness of the heart, once the Protestant swamp had frozen over? I cannot say-- though he certainly lacks nothing of the harsh fervour and vulgar faith which characterized the illusory springtide of the early sixteenth century. For me, however, he personifies still more the religious piety of the sick and the poor. That awful Christ who hung dying over the altar of the Isenheim hospital would seem to have been made in the image of the ergotics who prayed to him; they must surely have found consolation in the thought that this God they invoked had suffered the same torments as themselves, and had become flesh in a form as repulsive as their own; and they must have felt less forsaken, less contemptible. It is easy to see why Grünewald's name, unlike the names of Holbein, Cranach and Dürer, is not to be found in the account-books or the records of commissions left by emperors and princes. His pestiferous Christ would have offended the taste of the courts; he could only be understood by the sick, the unhappy and the monks, by the suffering members of Christ.
Israeli President Shimon Peres accepted the credentials of the new ambassadors from Turkey, the European Union, Panama, Ghana, and Greece in an official ceremony held at the President’s Residence. President Peres discussed bilateral relations with the ambassadors with a particular focus on scientific, commercial, agricultural, technological, and touristic relations. The President promised the cooperation of the Office of the President.
In a meeting with the incoming Turkish Ambassador, Mr. Ahmet Oguz Celikkol, President Peres remarked on the relationship between both countries: "I really want to welcome you full heartedly. Relations with Turkey have a long past and I am sure a great future." President Peres also asked the ambassador to deliver his warm invitation to Turkish President Abdullah Gul and emphasized that he would be glad to host him on his visit. The President also updated the Ambassador on recent events with the Palestinians and the continuing economic growth in the West Bank.
The Ambassador responded that "our relationship is based on a very solid foundation. The President appreciates your invitation and at the appropriate time will visit Israel." The ambassador added, "Turkey is willing to contribute whatever it can to peace between Israel and its neighbors. This is our position and our government is following a policy of good relations with all its neighbors. Turkey considers Israel as a neighbor."
The President responded to the Turkish Ambassador and stated, "Turkey is an influential partner here [in the Middle East and] we are following its moves. I hope we shall together be able to bring peace closer. Our armies have a very close relationship and we have common dangers. Today the challenges do not come from armies, but rather from terror, violence, and weapons of mass destruction." The President added, "I am sure you met many friends, because Turkey has lots of friends in this country."
Earlier today the President also accepted the credentials of the Ambassador of the European Union Mr. Andrew Standley. At the start of the meeting the President stated that "I see the European Union is so interested in the Middle East. Let us make it a joint venture. We think that Europe can and should play an important role in the peace initiative and peace process. But I think there should be several principles all of us should respect. One, it must be an agreed upon plan, otherwise it will not hold water. Nobody can impose anything. Second, it should be basically bilateral, supported by Europe, the United States, and the Quartet. Third, we cannot forget the previous resolutions."
President Peres told the E.U. Ambassador that there the issue of Jerusalem has been muddled. The President emphasized that Gilo and the Old City require different approaches. Lastly, the President emphasized that Israel is committed to freedom of worship, without interruption, for people of all faiths in all of Jerusalem. The President added that "I personally believe that right now we cannot negotiate the negotiations."
The EU Ambassador responded, "In historical and cultural terms we have a deep connection. I think our engagement with Israel, with other countries in the region, is a vital interest for the European Union." The Ambassador added, "We hope very much that all parties involved will be able to see these conclusions as a sincere and constructive and balanced effort to contribute to a positive dynamic to lead to the reopening of negotiations."
The Ambassador concluded, "I think it is important in the context to know that the conclusions adopted yesterday with regard to Jerusalem, speak of Jerusalem as a shared capital of two states, of Israel and a future Palestinian state but based on a negotiated outcome. Israel has the full support of the European Union. There should be a negotiating process with no impositions from outside."
The President received the credentials of the following ambassadors:
Ambassador of the Republic of Ghana, Mr. Henry Hanson-Hall
Ambassador of the Republic of Greece, Mr. Kyriakos Loukakis
Ambassador of the European Union, Mr. Andrew Standley
Ambassador of the Republic of Panama, Mr. Roberto Eduardo Arango
Ambassador of the Republic of Turkey, Mr. Ahmet Oguz Celikkol
In July 2012, Herta Müller, Nobel Prize winner for literature, returned to Swansea to accept an honorary award.
Based in Berlin, Herta Müller is one of Europe’s foremost contemporary writers, focusing on vital issues including dictatorship and migration. She is one of only 12 women writers ever to receive the Nobel Prize for Literature.
In 1996 Herta was writer-in-residence at the Centre for Contemporary German Culture at Swansea University.
watercolor on tan paper 11x17 inches
Briefly accepting models for various projects email for details.
Green and Yellow lights with acceptor panel
A close-up study of the acceptor panel in the depot. It was a vital component to the running of what was an incredibly busy environment. It was the fail-safe method for admitting trains into the depot and back onto the system. A hand twisted a special castle-cut key which then triggered the appropriate train movements.
Image ©Bradley Photography, Northumberland.
Part of a selection of images on show at The British Postal Museum & Archive, London, as part of "Mail Rail: A Photographic Exhibition".
This image is copyright © Silvia Paveri. All right reserved. This photo must not be used under ANY circumstances without written consent.
Questa immagine è protetta da copyright © Silvia Paveri. Tutti i diritto sono riservati. L'immagine non deve essere utilizzata in nessun caso senza autorizzazione scritta dell'autore.
Well, I had to start somewhere. I am new to this video thing, so I will do more and more as I learn. Here is a short vid of the ELS pulling some of the pulpwood off of Cormier siding to take into Green Bay for delivery to the CN. These cars were stored here because the train was too long a couple days before and the CN wouldn't accept a train over 75 cars in length. These are old Milwaukee road SD40-2's back on home rails. I hope everyone enjoys.
The sketch and the pictures I posted are of a simple mechanical
coin validator - acceptor.
it works on the principle that once you insert a coin through a crack that is made according to the exact size of a specific coin.
the coin rolls down and fills a slot then by pulling the handle the safety hinge slides over the coin, making it possible to pull the handle all the way back and trigger the timer or any other device connected, once you release the handle the mechanism returns to it's original position.
this coin Validator is based on similar one I found in a Mexican Football machine
article sourced from
www.funmunch.com/events/janmashtami/lord_krishna.shtml
Lord Krishna appeared over five thousand years ago in Mathura, India to Devaki and Vasudeva in the jail cell of the tyrant Kamsa. The place of His birth is known as Sri Krishna Janmasthana. He appeared with His brother Balarama in response to the demigods' prayers for protection from the widespread influence of demonic administration on earth.
Previously, the demigods and demons had been at war in the heavens. When the demons were defeated by the demigods, they decided to instead attack this planet earth. Thus, they invaded the earth by discretely taking birth as princes in powerful royal families of the time.
And as the earth became overrun by militaristic activities of these kingly demons, the demigods including the Earth goddess earnestly sought Lord Visnu's protection. Seeing the deteriorating social and political conditions and hearing the prayers of the demigods, the all-compassionate Supreme Lord Sri Krishna decided to descend for the benefit of all.
The Supreme Lord descends from time to time in this material world to reestablish the teachings of the Vedas. In His Bhagavad-gita, Lord Krishna promises: "Whenever and wherever there is a decline in religious practice, O descendant of Bharata, and a predominant rise of irreligion--at that time I descend Myself. To deliver the pious and to annihilate the miscreants, as well as to reestablish the principles of religion, I Myself appear milleniumm after millenium."
Although eternal the Lord appears in specific circumstances out of mercy for His devotees. In fact, His principal biography, the Srimad Bhagavatam states, "the learned men describe the births and activities of the Unborn and Inactive." Therefore, although He appears within the material dimensions of time and space, He is most definitely not of it.
Historically, Lord Krishna appeared on the midnight of the 8th day of the dark half of the month of Sravana. This corresponds to July 19th 3228 BC. He exhibited His pastimes for a little over 125 years and dissappeared on February 18th 3102 BC on the new moon night of Phalguna. (His departure marks the beginning of the current age of corruption known as Kali.)
The great scholar Srila Vishvanatha Chakravarti neatly outlines Lord Krishna's activities in this way: the first three years and four months were spent in Gokula, then equal lengths of time in Vmdavana and Nandagram, eighteen years and four months in Mathura, and finally ninety-six years and eight months in Dvaraka totalling 125 years of manifest pastimes. See the Krishna-lila chart.
Lord Krishna's early pastimes are briefly summarized at the website Krishna's Adventures in Vraja"During this childhood time , He grew up as the son of His foster parents Nanda and Yasoda in the midst of the idyllic beauty of Gokula, Vrindavana, and Nandagram. Not only did He destroy numerous demons, but also performed His famous rasa dance.
Krishna enjoyed the dance of love (rasa-lila) with the gopis many of whom are expansions of His own internal energies. The supreme gopi known as Srimati Radharani is the object of Krishna's highest devotion. This beautiful dance would occur in the autumn season at night under a full moon when Lord Krishna would captivate the young gopis with the extraordinary music of His flute . These esoteric pastimes constitute the most confidential expression of divinity ever revealed.
Usually the conception of sprirtual perfection consists of overwhelming feelings only of awe and reverence at God's majesty. However, in these pastimes each devotee loves God either as a master, a best freind, a mischievous son, or even as an intimate lover, thus revealing the infinite possibilities of divine love. These early pastimes of Lord Krsna in Vrindavana illustrate the extraordinary intimacy that one can have with God. These pastimes are described in detail by Sri Visvantha Chakravarti in his Sri Krishna Bhavanamrta Mahakavya
When Krsna and Balarama were older, They were invited to Mathura, where Karnsa, Their demonic uncle, was planning Their death in a wrestling match against two large and powerful wrestlers. When Kamsa saw his wrestlers defeated, he ordered his friends to drive the brothers out of Mathura, plunder the riches of Their cowherd friends, and kill Their fathers, Nanda and Vasudeva. However, Krishna immediately killed Kamsa and Balarama killed his eight brothers. Lord Krishna then established the pious King Ugrasena as the emperor of several kingdoms.
In Mathura, both Krishna and Balarama were initiated by Gargamuni in the Gayatri mantra> Later They went to live under the care of Sandipani Muni who instructed Them in all the Vedic arts and sciences in sixty-four days and nights especially in military science, politics and spirituality. As an offering (guru-daksina) to Their teacher, They recovered his son from death. Although God does not need instruction from anyone else, Lord Krsna and His brother set the perfect example : one must accept instruction from and serve a bona-fide spiritual master to advance in spiritual life.
For the next eighteen years, They continued to live in Mathura halting the impending threat of many demonic kings. Later in Their pastimes Lord Balarama married a princess named Revati. Lord Krsna married many queens, the foremost among them being the extraordinarily beautiftil Queen Rukmani. (See Sri Rukmani website for the story of Their marriage). Both Krishna and Balarama established Their palaces in Dwaraka off the coast of western India, where They enjoyed married life for many years. Although They were married, Lord Krishna and Lord Balrama exhibited the quality of detachment from material life perfectly.
When They were about ninety years old, the great world war of Kuruksetra took place. This climactic battle brought together all the major world leaders. Lord Krsna took the role of a charioteer on the side of the pious Pandavas, while Lord Balarama refusing to participate went on a pilgrimage tour thereby blessing the entire land of India.
At the start of the war, Lord Krishna displayed His stupendous Universal Form delivered His famous message known as the Bhagavad-gita, literally the Song of God. This Song contains the essence of all knowledge having been spoken by the Supreme Lord Sri Krishna Himself. This war concluded with the destruction of the demonic kings and the reinstatement of the righteous Pandava princes.
Having completed Their mission, Balarama and Krsna resumed Their life in Dvaraka where They spent some thirty-five more years before ending Their earthly manifest activities The foremost description of Lord Krishna's activities occurs in the Srimad Bhagavatam, literally "the Beautiful Book of God."
A photographer friend of mine asked me to shoot a local fashion show with her. I accepted. Then she asked me if I would take head shots for the models. Okay. On the first day we attended the dress rehearsal; it was chaos. The lighting was awful and the the lighting dude kept changing it. Dreadful results. On the second day I spent about 6 hours doing head shots of about 45 models. Exhausting. I was stuck in the basement, I found a cramped space to turn into a basic studio. I tried my best under the circumstances. The result was I missed the entire fashion show. Grrrr, I spent a few weeks working on the photos, sent them out to the models I shot with, and waited to hear back from them. And waited. I think I've heard back from about 5 models thanking me for my time and photos. It was so discouraging. I'll never do anything like this again. The only bright side was meeting some very lovely models; we're already planning future shoots - I hope we can pull them off.
Hailey, the model in the photo, is a keeper and a great find. I actually met her at the practice session the night before - and my camera liked her instantly. She is so sweet, photogenic, and classy. After she walked the runway at the real fashion show she still had a lot of energy and wanted to do some more shooting. I would never tell her no, so we had a fun, impromptu shoot - what a blast. And we also ended up shooting with her a few weeks later. Life is good!
Donation Information:
If you would like to help those affected by Wednesday's storms, the American Red Cross is accepting donations in a couple of ways.
Make out your check to "American Red Cross - Neighbors in Need", and mail it to:
American Red Cross - Neighbors in Need
300 Chase Park South
Hoover Alabama 35244
If you prefer to make a donation on-line, please click here to visit alredcross.org
-To apply for federal disaster assistance online, go to www.disasterassistance.gov
-To apply over the phone, call 1-800-621-3362 between the hours of 7am and 10 pm.
-The United Way has set up a hotline to help victims find low cost temporary housing. Call 211 for more details.
Volunteer Information:
-United Way's Hands on Birmingham - www.handsonbirmingham.org
-Volunteers in Tuscaloosa are asked to register at St. Matthias Episcopal Church on Skyland Boulevard
-Volunteers in Calhoun County must register at the Ohatchee Police Department
-Volunteers in Concord must register at the YMCA on 4th Avenue South
-Webster's Chapel leaders are looking for volunteers with vehicles who can distribute supplies to tornado victims. Volunteers should go to the Webster's Chapel Fire Station
Drop off Locations:
-Harvest Church in Northport is accepting donations for tornado survivors
-Christian Service Mission at 3600 3rd Ave South is accepting personal care items, baby supplies, and other items of basic need
-First Baptist Church Trussville is a drop off point for donations Monday through Friday 8am to 6pm
-Church of the Highlands on Grants Mill Road is accepting items of basic need
-Mt. Zion Baptist Church in Alexandria is collecting donations of bathing supplies
-Clear Branch United Methodist Church in Argo is a drop off location from 8am to 4pm Monday through Friday
-Mark Ferrier Ministries has a drop off point at 97.7 Fox FM radio in Jasper
-Alabaster First United Methodist Church accepting donations for storm survivors at Restore Building behind the church
-Holy Faith Temple is accepting donations for tornado survivors in Childersburg
-Central Baptist Church of Jasper is collecting supplies for victims in Cordova.
-McAlpine Recreation Center at 1115 Avenue F in Ensley is now a drop off point
-108 Haynes Street in Talladega is collecting donations for survivors in East Alabama
-East Birmingham Church of God on First Avenue North is collecting supplies
-All Books-A-Million stores are collecing monetary donations for the Salvation Army
-East Birmingham Church of God in Christ on 1st Avenue is collecting supplies
-Aldrich Assembly of God is collecting relief supplies at Lucky's Market in Montevallo and Sammy's Fresh Market in Wilsonville.
-Vance town community center is collecting donations for survivors in Vance
-Helena Cumberland Presbyterian Church is accepting donations all week from 9am until 6pm.
-Donations in Calhoun County may be dropped off at Eagle Point Baptist Church in Jacksonville and Word Alive Church in Coldwater.
-Jasper Jaycees are accepting donated items at the fairgrounds on Airport Road. Cash donations can be made at Bank of Walker County. Call 205-221-3928 for more info.
-Hardin's Chapel Church in Ragland is an official EMA site
-Cullman county donation locations: Eagle Point Church, Isaiah 58-Word Alive Church, Piedmont Benevolence and Salvation Army
-UAB is holding blood drives at the North Pavillion from 10am to 5pm Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday. 7am to 2pm Tuesday and Friday
Places to pick up items or get help:
-People with disabilities who have lost medication or equipment can call 205-251-2223 ext 102
-United Way has set up a hotline to help victims find low cost temporary housing - call 211
-There will be a physician on site and medicine available at Scott School through Saturday from 7am to 7pm
-Tornado survivors in Hale and Greene counties can get help at Springfield United Methodist Church in Eutaw and at Johnson Hill United Methodist Church in Union
-Toiletries and clothing are available for pick up at Plum Grove Baptist Church in Tuscaloosa. If you need transportation, call 205-292-5836
-Food and water stations for victims are set up at the Leland Shopping Center, Forest Lake Baptist relief center and Skyland Elementary.
-Aldridge Community Missionary Baptist Church in Parrish has food, formula, clothes and water for any storm survivors who need help.
-Victims in St. Clair County can get food, water and other supplies at the Shoal Creek Community Center.
-Tarps available in St. Clair County at Odenville Fire Department, Pell City Fire Station One, Reiverside Fire Department
-The Salvation Army has set up mobile canteen operations in Forest Lake, Holt High School and on 15th Street in Alberta City.
-Tornado victims in Hale and Greene Counties can get help at Springfield United Methodist Church in Eutaw and at Johnson Hill United Methodist Church in Union.
-The Masonic Lodge in Pleasant Grove is serving meals and distributing supplies to tornado victims.
-Bethel Baptist Church in Pratt City is providing food and shelter to tornado survivors in that community
-Food, water and other supplies are available at Pleasant Ridge Baptist Church in Hueytown.
-The Red Cross has opened feeding stations at Oak Grove Baptist Church, Knighten's Volunteer Fire Department, Webster's Chapel Volunteer Fire Department, First Baptist Church of Williams, Mt. Olive Volunteer Fire Department in Ohatchee and the Ellis Community Fire Department.
-Hardin's Chapel Church in Ragland is an official EMA site
-Free first aid station is open in Pleasant Grove from 9am to 6pm at 615 Pleasant Grove Road Monday through Friday
-Free medical clinic at Scott School in Pratt City 7am to 7pm
Shelters:
-Bethel Baptist Church in Pratt City is providing food and shelter to tornado victims in that community.
-The American Red Cross has set up shelters at the Belk Center in Tuscaloosa, First Baptist Church in Hanceville, the Boutwell Auditorium in Birmingham, the Civic Center in Cullman and First United Methodist Church in Springville.
-American Red Cross shelter in St. Clair County is at Greensport Baptist Church in Ashville
Insurance office locations:
-Allstate Insurance has mobile claims centers set up at the Lowe's in Bessemer, the Winn-Dixie at River Square Plaza in Hueytown and the K-Mart on Skyland Boulevard in Tuscaloosa.
-State Farm has centers set up at Lowe's in Cullman, Tuscaloosa, Bessemer and Fultondale.
-ALFA has centers at the Save-a-Lot in Cullman and the ALFA Service Center in Gadsden.
-Farmers Insurance has centers at Home Depot in Tuscaloosa, the Forest Square Shopping Center in Forestdale, and the Farmers district offices in Vestavia Hills and Pell City.
Misc:
-A battery charging station is set up at the Walmart in Tuscaloosa. Flash lights are also being given away while supplies last.
-If you have loved ones who are still missing in the Birmingham area, call 205-787-1487 or 205-787-1488.
-Greater Birmingham Humane Society lost and found pet hotline open 8am to 5pm daily: 205-397-8534. Hotline is for Jefferson and Tuscaloosa counties
-Official FEMA mobile disaster recovery center in Sumter county: Geiger Town Hall 201 Broadway
-Victims in Pratt City are in need of trash bags and baskets to help collect their personal belongings
-Calhoun County needs rope, tools, gloves, masks, tarps, first aid supplies and baby supplies
-Some local contractors in Tuscaloosa are offering free debris removal. Call 205-248-5800.
-Samaritan's Purse in Tuscaloosa is providing free debris removal and free tarps. Call 205-345-7554.
-The McWane Center in Birmingham is offering free admission to anyone who brings supplies for tornado victims.
-A dusk to dawn curfew is in effect for all of Cullman County.
-An 8pm to 6am curfew is in effect in the city of Tuscaloosa.
Challenge Accepted! continued this week with a task to see which team's track would allow a ping pong ball to travel the longest amount of time.
Capitanul Ionel Epure (al doilea din stânga), erou martir al Neamului Românesc care a plătit cu viața încercarea de a opri trupele de ocupație sovietice ce înaintau în Basarabia, după ultimatumul stalinist din 26-28 iunie 1940 și acceptarea lui de ”consiliile de coroană” al lui Carol 2. În fotografie mai apar Felix Țopescu, Constantin Zahei și Toma Tudoran (de la stânga la dreapta), în timpul unui concurs hipic militar înainte de război.
www.cristiannegrea.ro/geopolitica/2013/06/cedarea-basarab...